And the Monkey Learned Nothing: Dispatches from a Life in Transit

Writing with the belief that "the anecdote is our ticket to the sublime," Lutz (Doing Nothing) shares anecdotes from his travels across the globe, focusing on his encounters with strangers. These brief narratives rarely exceed five pages in length and include a discussion of a pilgrim's method of prostration at the Jokhang Temple in Lhasa, Tibet; an exchange with a student tour guide in Kumbakonam, India; and a story involving church bells and a Belgian accountant in Quito, Ecuador. In the latter, Lutz flatly claims, "There is no story here." Readers might think this is true of many of the anecdotes. Lutz's style has a decidedly literary bent, prioritizing grand imagery and language over context and narrative arc. In his recollection of Botswana, he records a conversation about officially and unofficially entering the country, which closes with an image: "Elegant giraffes stood on one shore. On the other, upstream, elephants." Readers who do not share Lutz's zeal for travel, his embrace of being a total stranger, and his disregard for context may have a hard time following the author's train of thought. (Oct.)